Albanian civil society march in support of missing kids

Albanian civil society organized march in support of missing children ahead of the International Day of Missing Children, according to Albanian Telegraphic Agency. People protested in Tirana, capital of Albania in front of Albanian Ministry of Internal Affairs and the general Prosecution Office to seek a greater attention of the institutions, law enforcement agencies and society for the issue of lost children. International Day for Missing Children, May 25, is a day when people and society worldwide recall the lost children, remember those children who have been victims of trafficking, exploitation and abuse and support efforts family to find their children. The main purpose of the International Day of Missing Children is to encourage everyone to think about lost children and to spread messages of hope. The march in Tirana was joined by family members and relatives of missing children who called on relevant instances for more attention to cases of loss and disappearance of children in Albania. Altin Hazizaj, Director General of The Center for Protection of Children's Rights of Albania CRCA, asked of all institutions serious commitment to intensify the search on all the missing children and the creating of a standard procedure to clearly define the term "lost child." Albania is a source country for children trafficked for the purposes of sexual exploitation and forced labor, including forced begging. Albanian victims are trafficked primarily to Greece, and also to Italy, Macedonia, Kosovo, Spain, France, Britain and other Western European countries, as well as within Albania.